Miami-Dade County Leads South Florida in Job Growth; State of Florida Leading Nation.

MIAMI -- The Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County's official economic development partnership, is pleased to announce that the unemployment rate for Miami-Dade County in March 2005 was 4.8 percent, down from 5.7 percent in March 2004. According to the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation (FAWI), the South Florida area (Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties) added more than 62,000 jobs in the 12-month period. South Florida continues to lead the State, and Florida continues to lead the nation in new job growth.

Miami-Dade County led South Florida's job growth by adding more than 23,000 jobs between March 2004 and March 2005, while Broward County added 20,900 new jobs and Palm Beach County created 18,400 new jobs during the same time period.

"With the continued growth of various economic sectors and the use of a methodology that accurately reflects our diverse economy, we believe that Miami-Dade will continue to see its lowest unemployment rates since 2001," said Frank Nero, President and CEO of the Beacon Council. "The Beacon Council, through its Local Business Local Jobs program, has focused on helping local companies thrive and expand, and this job growth demonstrates the strength of Miami-Dade's economy."

The sectors experiencing considerable growth in Miami-Dade include construction, wholesale trade, financial services, professional services, and hospitality. The construction sector, which grew 1.9 percent between March 2004 and March 2005, continues to expand due to the sustained building and planning of residential and commercial real estate, in particular condominiums in downtown Miami and single-family homes in South Dade. The 2.5 percent growth in wholesale trade and distribution can be attributed to the improvement in the local, U.S. and Latin American economies during the latter part of 2004. The visitor industry has bounced back to pre-September 11 levels with 3.5 percent growth between March 2004 and March 2005, and professional and financial services have increased 7.0 and 1.3 percent respectively. This growth is partly based on the increased need for these services by the other growing sectors.

Beginning in January 2005, FAWI began using the 2000 Census population numbers to more accurately reflect the number of people in Miami-Dade, and new procedures to produce labor force estimates for cities based on unemployment claims and population.

About the Beacon Council

The Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County's official economic development partnership, is a not-for-profit, public-private organization that focuses on job creation and economic growth by coordinating community-wide programs; promoting minority business and urban economic revitalization; providing assistance to local businesses in their expansion efforts; and marketing Greater Miami throughout the world.